Furikake Hashbrowns with Kalua Pork & Kimchi

That’s how I feel at least. I adore brunch. It is my favorite meal of the day by far. Perhaps because most of us only take the time to enjoy it on the weekends or for special occasions, when our schedules are not packed full of work, errands and appointments. Brunch is a time to connect in a fairly intimate setting with our friends/dining partners. We’re not out in a loud bar or trying to keep our eyes open over our dinners. We’re not hurrying through a weekday breakfast, drinking our smoothies as we’re rushing to get ready for a day at the office, or skipping the meal altogether.

Brunch has no time frame. It can go on for hours and bleed well into the afternoon. It has no stuffy parameters and can take any form with many different types of foods, and in my opinion is most always enjoyed with wonderful people. I have a special surprise in store for you all soon to share my affinity for this increasingly trendy meal, but for now I wanted to leave you with a delicious, different, and some would call “exotic” brunch dish I dreamed up.

As soon as I came across My Name is Yeh’s fabulous recipe for furikake latkes, my recipe development wheels started turning. You see, being raised by a father that grew up in Hawaii, the Asian seaweed and seasoning combination has been a favorite of mine ever since I stopped ordering JUST grilled cheese at every restaurant we ate at whenever we were visiting the islands. Typically used as a seasoning for rice, I quickly found whatever uses I could for it and starting using it to top any and all of my Asian-inspired meals (like my Spicy Poke Bowl.) Once I saw the latke recipe, I realized my creativity had been severely lacking in the furikake department recently.

My mind immediately wandered to one of my favorite Hawaiian breakfast dishes, kimchi fried rice (specifically the version that one of my favorite Oahu restaurants, Big City Diner, makes.) I decided to combine the idea of using furikake to season potatoes (like the latkes, but this time in hashbrown form), a crockpot version of Hawaii’s classic shredded meat, Kalua pork, and some homemade kimchi to really add that acidic kick I love so much in Big City’s Kim Chi Fried Rice. Oh, and to really make it “brunch” (rather than lunch or dinner, of which it could easily be either) of course I had to top it with a fried egg.

This recipe doesn’t take too much time to put together the morning of, but it does require a little bit of prep work the day before (and a food processor, unless you know how to make shredded potatoes otherwise!) But that’s okay, because we’re talking Sunday brunch here which means you’ll have all of Saturday to get things organized. I prepped the kimchi a day in advance (using this quick kimchi recipe from Food & Wine) and put it in a mason jar to let it sit overnight. Before we went to bed that night, I got this Kalua pork recipe going in the slow cooker. The next morning, the kimchi was marinated, the meat was done, and all I needed to do was make the hashbrowns and the fried egg and pull it all together.

I realize that these are all fairly unusually combinations and flavors for anyone that hasn’t grown up eating Hawaii’s amazing foodstuffs, but just trust me on this one. If you’re a fan of savory breakfasts, with a little bit of salty, a little bit of savory, and a little bit of acidity (and lots of protein!) these Furikake Hashbrowns with Kalua Pork & Kimchi are for you.

Now please, please, please get on the phone with all of your closest friends and invite them over for brunch tomorrow. Whip up some of these or these to whet everyone’s palates when they arrive, and they will be clamoring for these bad boys as soon as they smell everything wafting through the air.

I, myself, am going to continue to enjoy this amazing town of Vancouver for a couple more days, but you can bet I’m looking forward to whipping up a brunch as soon as I get back!

1recipe of Fresh Cabbage Kimchiyou will have leftovers to use in other dishes

1recipe of Kalua porkyou will also have leftovers of this

4baking potatoes

6tablespoonsbutterdivided

4-6tablespoonsfurikake

6-8eggs

Srirachaoptional

Instructions

Prepare Fresh Cabbage Kimchi as directed. Place in mason jar for storage and refrigerate overnight.

Prepare Kalua pork as directed. In the morning, once the pork has finished cooking (and is still on the “warming” phase), shred the pork in the crockpot using two forks. Let sit in its own juices for about 20 minutes, then remove from crockpot and set aside.

Using the shredder attachment of a food processor, shred the potatoes. Immediately remove from food processor and place on a plate or in a shallow bowl, cover with a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds. This will prevent the potatoes from turning brown before you cook them.

Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once butter is melted, spread out potatoes evenly in a thin layer on the pan. Let cook over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes, or until bottom side of hashbrowns become golden brown and crispy. Flip hashbrowns over and cook for another 8-10 minutes to brown and crisp up the other side. Remove from pan onto large plate, and place in microwave to keep warm.

In the same skillet that you used for the hashbrowns, heat another two tablespoons of butter. Once butter is melted and pan is hot, crack eggs directly into pan. Let cook on one side until the whites turn opaque and the yolks begin to harden. Flip over to finish cooking and then turn off the heat.

To assemble the plates: Start with a layer of the furikake hashbrowns, then add the Kalua pork. Top the pork with the fried eggs and then with the kimchi.

If you’d like to add a little more “heat” to the dish (I did!) add a little drizzle of sriracha.

Recipe Notes

Wine Pairing Notes: Since we’re talking brunch, we might as well talk about a good alcoholic beverage pairing. I’d highly recommend an Italian Prosecco with this dish (orange juice optional.) Prosecco tends to have a slight off-dry flavor, which make it the perfect pairing for a spicier breakfast dish with lots of different flavors going on.

I was going online to find another Korean that I recently came across when I saw this post. I realized that I had not made Kalua pork in the oven in ages(pork butt, Hawaiian salt, lots of garlic, liquid smoke, all tightly wrapped in aluminum foil and slow roast for a couple of hours). I think I still prefer Kalua pork with rice, but I’ll give the hash browns a try. Do I dare make it into “loco moco” style, with gravy? Thanks for the recipe. BTW, the ad that appeared in your post showed NOH’s seasoning salt. I’ve never seen that here in Pearl City,

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Hi, I'm Robin! A passionate foodie, I love creating (mostly) balanced recipes while still allowing plenty of room for life’s little indulgences. I believe that with a focus on whole, minimally processed foods, there's no need for severe diets or restrictions. Thanks for reading my blog….I look forward to getting to know you!